My Journey with Lions Quest SFA at Anjuman-I-Islam Allana English Secondary School Kurla West, Mumbai, Maharashtra

If you walk through the bright and busy corridors of Anjuman-I-Islam Allana English Secondary School, Kurla West, on a normal school morning, you will hear all the familiar sounds of school life—the chalk moving across the blackboard, pages turning, students talking and laughing between periods, and teachers guiding their classes.

But if you pause for a moment and observe carefully, you will notice something much more meaningful.

You will see students listening to each other, handling disagreements more calmly, helping their classmates, expressing their feelings, and speaking with greater confidence.

As a teacher at this school, I have had the privilege of witnessing this beautiful transformation over the years.

My name is Ms. Hajra, and for more than thirteen years, our school has been actively implementing the Skills for Adolescence (SFA) programme through Lions Quest. What began as an educational programme has gradually become an important part of our school culture. It has influenced not only the way we teach, but also the way our students think, communicate, behave, and build relationships with one another.

How It All Began

When we first introduced the programme, we understood that it could not simply become another subject added to an already busy timetable.

Social and emotional learning needs time, consistency, understanding, and genuine involvement from teachers and students.

Every academic year begins with an important step—the pre-survey.

Before we begin our regular lessons, textbooks, and academic planning, the pre-survey helps us understand our students better. It gives us an idea about their emotional and social well-being, their concerns, their relationships, their strengths, and the challenges they may be facing.

This helps us understand where our students are starting from and what kind of support they may need during the year.

Learning Through Lions Quest

We then follow the structured lessons and activities provided in the Lions Quest journals.

As teachers, we are provided with useful teaching resources, including interactive PowerPoint presentations. These resources help us explain important topics such as emotional regulation, empathy, decision-making, communication, relationships, and peer pressure in a way that students can easily understand and relate to.

But, according to me, the most valuable part begins after the presentation.

It is when we close the presentation and start talking.

Students get opportunities to participate in journal activities, share their opinions, reflect on their experiences, and listen to their classmates. Sometimes, a simple classroom discussion can make a child realise that someone else may be experiencing the same emotions or challenges.

That is where real learning takes place.

Lions Quest Days

Throughout the academic year, we try to take these lessons beyond the classroom.

Our Lions Quest Days are always special. Students participate in skits, role-plays, group activities, presentations, and collaborative projects.

These activities help them understand that values such as empathy, respect, cooperation, responsibility, and kindness are not just words written in a textbook.

They are values that we can practise in our everyday lives.

Our Gratitude Wall

One activity that is especially close to my heart is our Gratitude Wall.

The wall is placed in a common area where students can easily see it. Over time, it has become a beautiful part of our school environment.

Students write small messages of appreciation on sticky notes.

A student may thank a friend for sharing lunch. Another may appreciate a classmate who helped with a difficult Mathematics problem. Someone may simply write a thank-you message for a friend who made them smile on a difficult day.

These may seem like small gestures, but they have a powerful impact.

The Gratitude Wall has helped transform the idea of gratitude from something we simply define in a lesson into something students practise in their daily lives.

The Change We See in Our Students

After being associated with this programme for more than thirteen years, what makes me happiest is not just the activities, surveys, or classroom displays.

It is the change we see in our students.

One of the biggest changes has been in communication.

Earlier, some students would hesitate to talk about their worries, conflicts, academic pressure, or personal concerns. Today, many students are much more comfortable expressing what they feel.

They know that they can approach their teachers and speak openly.

Even during parent-teacher meetings, parents often share how their children have started talking more openly at home about their school day, their concerns, and their feelings.

As a teacher, hearing this is extremely rewarding.

Growing Confidence

Another beautiful change is the growth in self-confidence.

Students who once hesitated to raise their hands or were afraid of giving a wrong answer are now more willing to participate.

They are learning an important lesson:

Making a mistake does not mean that you have failed. It means you have an opportunity to learn and try again.

The classroom is gradually becoming a space where students feel comfortable expressing their opinions, asking questions, and learning from one another.

Creating a empathetic School Environment

We have also seen a positive change in the way students deal with conflicts and bullying.

Through Lions Quest, students learn about empathy, respect, peer pressure, communication, and the consequences of their actions.

They are encouraged to understand how their words and behaviour can affect another person.

When disagreements happen, students are learning to communicate and look for peaceful solutions rather than immediately reacting with anger.

Another encouraging change is that students are becoming more willing to support their classmates instead of simply watching when someone is facing a difficulty.

The Helping Nature of Our Students

One of the things that makes me proud as a teacher is seeing students help one another naturally.

Older students guide younger students.

Classmates form study groups and help friends who are finding a particular subject difficult.

Students share, encourage, listen, and support one another.

Helping others is no longer something that students do only because a teacher has instructed them to do so.

For many of them, it has become a natural part of school life.

Looking at the Progress

At the end of the academic year, we conduct a post-survey.

The results help us understand the progress made during the year. The changes we observe in our classrooms are also reflected in the feedback and data, particularly in areas such as empathy, communication, relationships, and the overall school environment.

For us, these results are encouraging because they show that social and emotional learning can create a meaningful and lasting difference.

Looking Back After More Than 13 Years

When I look back at our journey with Lions Quest SFA at Anjuman-I-Islam Allana English Secondary School, I feel a deep sense of pride.

More than thirteen years of implementing this programme have given us countless opportunities to learn, improve, and grow together with our students.

The Lions Quest programme has provided us with valuable tools and guidance, but our students have brought those lessons to life.

As teachers, we naturally celebrate good examination results and academic achievements. But education is about much more than marks and grades.

When I see our students becoming more confident, empathetic, responsible, respectful, and helpful, I feel that we are preparing them for something far greater than examinations.

We are preparing them for life.

And perhaps that is the most beautiful lesson of all.

After more than thirteen years, our Lions Quest journey continues—and every new batch of students gives us another reason to believe in the power of kindness, empathy, confidence, and positive communication.